Infrastructure Improvement Program.pdf

RFQ2765 Infrastructure Improvement Program 1 of 10

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities Department Request for Letters of Interest and Statements of Qualifications

For Professional Engineering Services

RFQ2765

issue date: 09.08.2026

THE CITY OF WINSTON-SALEM DESIRES TO ENGAGE A PRIVATE ENGINEERING FIRM FOR

THE FOLLOWING PROJECT:

INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities is seeking Letters of Interest from experienced engineering firms to provide continuation program management and staff augmentation services for its Utilities Field Office (UFO), with an expanded focus on both wastewater collection and water distribution system operations.

This Request for Qualifications represents the continuation and evolution of the Collection System Improvement Program initiated in 2015 in response to regulatory concerns related to sanitary sewer overflows.

All questions concerning this RFQ or the scope of work should be submitted in writing to Derek Stroud at dereks@cityofws.org by the End of Question period of 5:00pm, September 25, 2026.

This RFQ will in no manner be construed as a commitment on the part of the City to award a contract. The City reserves the right to reject any or all applications; to waive minor irregularities in the RFQ process or in the applications; to re-advertise this RFQ; to postpone or cancel this process; select and procure parts of services; and to change or modify the RFQ schedule at any time.

Proposals shall be complete and comply with the requirements listed herein.

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: Submit proposals electronically in PDF format only by 12:00pm, October 5, 2026 to Derek Stroud at dereks@cityofws.org .

Responses received after this date and time will not be considered.

mailto:dereks@cityofws.org

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SECTION 1: NOTICE TO PROPOSERS:

It is the policy of the City that an employee, officer, or agent of City may not participate in any manner in the bidding, awarding, or administering of contracts in which they, or a member of their immediate family, their business partner, or any organization in which they serve as an officer, director, trustee, or employee, has a financial interest.

The successful proposer must comply with all provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Equal Employment Opportunity Act (EEOA), and all rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. By submitting a proposal, the successful proposer agrees to indemnify the City from and against all claims, suits, damages, costs, losses, and expenses in any manner arising out of, or connected with, the failure of the Company, its subcontractors, agents, successors, assigns, officers, or employees to comply with the provisions of the ADA, EEOA, or the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

No special inducements will be considered that are not a part of the original bidding document.

City’s Rights and Options The City, at its sole discretion, reserves the following rights:

• To supplement, amend, substitute or otherwise modify this RFQ at any time

• To cancel this RFQ with or without the substitution of another RFQ

• To take any action affecting this RFQ, this RFQ process, or the services subject to this RFQ that would be in the best interests of the city

• To issue additional requests for information

• To require one or more service providers to supplement, clarify, or provide additional information in order for the city to evaluate the responses submitted

• To share the Proposals with City employees other than the Evaluation Committee or City advisory committees as deemed necessary

• To award all, none, or any part of the Services that is in the best interest of the city, with one or more of the Service Providers responding, which may be done with or without re-solicitation.

• To discuss and negotiate with selected Service Provider(s) any terms and conditions in the Proposals including but not limited to financial terms

• To negotiate a contract with a service provider based on the information provided in response to this

RFQ

Public Records Any material submitted in response to this RFQ will become a “public record” once the proposer’s document(s) is opened and the proposer is determined to be a participant in the solicitation process and shall be subject to public disclosure consistent with Chapter 132, North Carolina General Statutes.

Proposals submitted under this section shall not be subject to public inspection until a contract is awarded N.C.G.S 143-129.8(d).

Trade Secrets/Confidentiality Proposers must claim any material that qualifies as "trade secret" information under N.C.G.S. 66152(3) in their response to this RFQ and must state the reasons why such exclusion from public disclosure is necessary and legal.

To properly designate material as trade secret under these circumstances, each Proposer must take the following precautions: (a) any trade secrets submitted by a Proposer should be submitted in a separate, sealed envelope marked "Trade Secret - Confidential and Proprietary Information - Do Not Disclose Except for the Purpose of Evaluating this Proposal," and (b) the same trade secret/confidentiality designation should be stamped on each page of the trade secret materials contained in the envelope.

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Do not attempt to designate your entire proposal as a trade secret, and do not attempt to designate pricing information as a trade secret. Doing so may result in your bid being disqualified.

In submitting a proposal, each Proposer agrees that the City may reveal any trade secret materials contained in such response to all City staff and City officials involved in the selection process, and to any outside consultant or other third parties who assist City in the selection process. Furthermore, each Proposer agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the City and each of its officers, employees, and agents from all costs, damages, and expenses incurred in connection with disclosing any material, which the Proposer has designated as a trade secret.

The City reserves the right to make all final determination(s) of the applicability of North Carolina General Statutes § 132-1.2, Confidential Information.

Familiarity with Laws and Ordinances The submission of a proposal on the services requested herein shall be considered as a representation that the Proposer is familiar with all federal, state, and local laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations which affect those engaged or employed in the provision of such services, or which in any way affects the conduct of the provision of such services; and no plea of misunderstanding will be considered on account of ignorance thereof. If the Proposer discovers any provisions in the RFQ documents that are contrary to or inconsistent with any law, ordinance, or regulation, it shall be reported to the City in writing without delay.

The Proposer agrees that in carrying out this contract, compliance will be maintained with all applicable federal, state, and local laws, specifically including, without limitations, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 and Section 1324A, the Immigration Reform and Control Act.

The Proposer certifies that the proposal is made in good faith and without collusion with any person making a proposal or with any officer or employee of the City.

The undersigned further agrees, in connection with the performance of this contract, not to discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, religion, color, gender, age, handicap, political affiliation, or national origin.

Proposals are to be signed by an officer of the company authorized to bind the submitter to its provisions.

Failure to manually sign the appropriate proposal form will disqualify the proposer and the proposal will not be considered.

Ethics Policy / Code of Conduct The City of Winston-Salem has established guidelines for ethical standards of conduct for City representatives and to provide guidance in determining what conduct is appropriate in particular cases. City representatives should maintain high standards of personal integrity, truthfulness, honesty, and fairness in carrying out public duties; avoid any improprieties in their roles as public servants including the appearance of impropriety; and never use their position or power for improper personal gain. In establishing an ethics policy, the City of Winston-Salem desires to protect the public against decisions that are affected by undue influence, conflicts of interest, or any other violation of these policies as well as promote and strengthen the confidence of the public in their governing body. For a complete review of the City Policy as it relates to this solicitation, click the following link. https://www.cityofws.org/820/Procurement-Guidelines

Stimulation of the Local Economy In an effort to stimulate the local economy, foster development and promote efficiency in the provision of city services and the completion of various city projects, the City of Winston-Salem has undertaken an initiative to strongly encourage all parties contracting with the City of Winston-Salem to evaluate their internal operations and hiring practices and, where appropriate, to initiate efforts to stimulate the local economy by hiring applicants and contractors from the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Area and by https://www.cityofws.org/820/Procurement-Guidelines

RFQ2765 Infrastructure Improvement Program 4 of 10 utilizing small and local business and service providers. Such efforts to stimulate the local economy may be accomplished by posting job vacancies with the North Carolina Employment Security Commission, the Piedmont Triad Regional Council of Governments, and the Winston-Salem Urban League; and utilizing the Winston-Salem Office of Business Opportunities to identify Winston-Salem/Forsyth County based contractors and subcontractors. Stimulation of the local economy requires a collaborative effort of both the public and private sector. The city is committed to taking reasonable steps to achieve said goal.

Iran Divestment Act Provider hereby certifies that it is not on the North Carolina State Treasurer’s list of persons engaging in business activities in Iran, prepared pursuant to NCGS 147-86.58, nor will Provider utilize on this agreement any subcontractor on such list. This list, along with additional information about the Iran Divestment Act, is available on the Treasurer’s Office site:

https://www.nctreasurer.com/inside-the-department/OpenGovernment/Pages/Iran-Divestment-Act-Resources.aspx.

Divestment from Companies that Boycott Israel Contractor hereby certifies that it is not on the North Carolina State Treasurer’s list of companies engaged in a boycott of Israel in violation of NCGS 147-86.80

et. seq. and that it will not utilize on this agreement any subcontractor on said list.

E-Verify Compliance Per N.C.G.S. 143-133.3 “E-VERIFY. CONTRACTOR shall comply with the requirements of Article 2 of Chapter 64 of the North Carolina General Statutes. Further, if the CONTRACTOR utilizes a subcontractor, the CONTRACTOR shall require the subcontractor to comply with the requirements of Article 2 of Chapter 64 of the North Carolina General Statutes.

Right to Audit To confirm compliance with the terms of this Agreement, local, state, and federal laws and regulations, the City may, at all reasonable times upon reasonable prior notice during usual business hours, inspect, audit and examine for a period up to five (5) years after completion of the service or project detailed in this Agreement, all accounts and books of Contractor and, where necessary, make copies of the Contractor's documents necessary to determine compliance. Such right may be exercised through any agent or employee of City or by independent certified public accountants designated by the City. The Contractor shall permit the aforementioned inspection, audit and examination, and where necessary, the City to make copies of documents verifying compliance as indicated herein.

Qualifications Pursuant to N.C.G.S. Chapter 55 Article 15 entitled Foreign Corporations, the successful bidder, if bidding on behalf of a corporation or LLC, must have on file with the Secretary of State of the State of North Carolina a Certificate of Authority to transact business in this state. If bidding on behalf of a sole proprietorship or business under an assumed name, the successful bidder must be registered as such with the Forsyth County Register of Deeds. Submission of a bid while not in compliance with this requirement will result in the bid being rejected as non-responsible.

Termination Unless otherwise agreed upon in writing by the parties, this Agreement may be terminated by either party for convenience with no less than ten (10) calendar days’ notice. In the event of termination, the Contractor will be paid for all Services properly rendered to the date of termination and shall promptly discontinue all Services affected (unless a termination notice from the City directs otherwise). In the event of any termination, the Contractor will be paid for all Services properly rendered to the date of termination and shall (i) promptly discontinue all Services affected (unless a termination notice from the City directs otherwise); and (ii) deliver to the City all documents, data, reports, estimates, summaries, and such other information and materials as may have been accumulated by the Contractor in performing the Services herein. Other than being paid for Services properly rendered to the date of termination, Contractor hereby https://www.nctreasurer.com/inside-the-department/OpenGovernment/Pages/Iran-Divestment-Act-Resources.aspx

RFQ2765 Infrastructure Improvement Program 5 of 10 waives any and all other claims for lost profits, lost opportunity, and for any and all other direct, indirect, special, and consequential damages. In the event that the City terminates this Agreement due to the Contractor’s poor workmanship, failure to perform the Service set out herein or, otherwise, for breach of this Agreement, or in the event that the Contractor terminates this Agreement for convenience or otherwise, the City may pursue and recover all remedies available at law or in equity, as these remedies are cumulative and do not exclude each other.

IMPORTANT: Winston-Salem City Code (Chapter 2, Article 1, Sec. 2-3) provides that the City may disqualify any business from bidding on contracts of the City if a business fails to perform satisfactorily on past or current projects.

Nondiscrimination Ordinance As a condition of entering into this contact, the Contractor represents and warrants that it will fully comply with the City's Non-Discrimination Policy, as set forth in Chapter 2, Section 2-8 Entitled “Policy of Nondiscrimination” of the Winston-Salem City Code. As part of such compliance, the Contractor shall not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, creed, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, veteran status, disability, age, marital status, familial status, protected hairstyle, political affiliation or national origin in the screening of applicants, the hiring and treatment of its employees, the provision of the goods and/or services set forth herein, or the solicitation, selection, hiring, or treatment of its subcontractors, vendors or suppliers, (hereinafter collectively “subcontractors”), if any, in connection with this contract or the contract solicitation process if applicable, nor shall the Contractor retaliate against any person or entity for reporting instances of such discrimination. The Contractor shall enact employment policies consistent with this obligation to refrain from such discrimination and shall provide evidence of such to the City within 90 calendar days of the first receipt of City funds. The Contractor shall provide equal opportunity for subcontractors to participate in all of its subcontracting and supply opportunities, if any, under this contract, provided that nothing contained in this clause shall prohibit or limit otherwise lawful efforts to remedy the effects of marketplace discrimination that has occurred or is occurring in the marketplace. The Contractor understands and agrees that a violation of this clause shall be considered a material breach of this contract and may result in termination of this contract, disqualification of the Contractor from participating in future City contracts pursuant to Winston-Salem City Code Section 2-3 or other sanctions. Furthermore, as a condition of entering into this contract, the Contractor agrees to:

(a) promptly provide to the City in a format specified by the City all information and documentation that may be requested by the City from time to time regarding the screening of applicants, the hiring and treatment of its employees particularly if City funds were used in connection with hiring and compensation process, and the solicitation, selection, treatment and payment of subcontractors, if any, in connection with this Agreement; and (b) if requested, provide to the City within sixty days after the request a truthful and complete list of the names of all subcontractors that the Grantee has used under this contract, including the total dollar amount paid by the Contractor on each subcontract or supply contract. The Contractor further agrees to fully cooperate in any investigation conducted by the City pursuant to the City’s Nondiscrimination Policy, to provide any documents, relevant to such investigation, that are requested by the City. The Contractor agrees to provide to the City from time to time on the City’s request, payment affidavits detailing the amounts paid by the Contractor to subcontractors and suppliers in connection with this contract within a certain period of time. Such affidavits shall be in the format specified by the City from time to time. Nothing in this contract shall infringe upon any rights afforded to the Contractor by state or federal law.

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SECTION 2: SCOPE OF WORK:

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Utilities (WSFCU), a division of the City of Winston-Salem, is seeking Letters of Interest from experienced engineering firms to provide continuation program management and staff augmentation services for its Utilities Field Office (UFO), with an expanded focus on both wastewater collection and water distribution system operations. This Request for Qualifications represents the continuation and evolution of the Collection System Improvement Program initiated in 2015 in response to regulatory concerns related to sanitary sewer overflows. To better optimize construction and funding, the new contract will not only focus on the collection system, but the distribution and stormwater systems as well, and all three with regard to city street and NCDOT resurfacing projects. It is expected that submitters will not only submit their own qualifications but the qualifications of a significant team of engineers and other representative experts due to the number of services necessary to meet WSFCU needs. Based on prior program knowledge, it is estimated that a team of 25 to 30 full-time employees will be required to meet expectations. WSFCU anticipates entering into a five-year agreement, with an option to renew services for an additional five years. Services and objectives proposed in the new program include but are not limited to the following:

• Asset condition assessment and prioritization with regard to the distribution system, collection system, stormwater system and the existing City pavement condition assessment

• UFO Support- The selected firm will function as an extension of WSFCU Staff, providing program management, engineering support, and construction coordination.

o Optimize staffing utilization and contractor support o Business processing optimization o Improve coordination and prioritization of field work o Identifying and implementing operational efficiencies and improved business processes o Reduce backlogs of identified sewer and water repairs through CIP project implementation o Preparation and submission of regulatory and internal CMOM compliance reports o RPR/ field support with regard to sewer main line cleaning and easement clearing

• Collection System-o Condition Assessment- Sewer main line cleaning, closed circuit television inspection, smoke testing, and manhole inspection with mileage targets determined by funding and system priorities o Prioritization of identified defect repairs o Management of infiltration and inflow detection and mitigation initiatives as well as data management and review from findings. (20 flow monitors are owned by WSFCU) o Review and management of lift station projects submitted for conveyance from new development

• Distribution System-o Prioritization of looping needs with regard to water age and/ or potential outages o Prioritization of water line replacements/ rehabilitation due to break history, age, pressure issues, fire-flow impact, and critical customers o Valve condition and replacement program o Valve exercising program o Possible water transmission line assessment and study

• Capital Improvement Projects Group (CIP)-o CIP development and prioritization based upon condition assessment findings o Predesign and project design services o Construction phase services o Oversight of the entire CIP portfolio from planning to construction, includes ongoing tracking and management of know defects and active designs for consistent delivery of projects

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• Sample Projects o Systemwide Sewer Rehabilitation Phases 1 through 7, Sprague Neighborhood Sanitary

Sewer Evaluation Study(SSES), Foxcroft and Diggs Neighborhood SSES, Zion SSES, Water Distribution System Improvements, Various water pressure issues systemwide, valve exercising program (Note: Some of these projects are complete, some ongoing, and some that need to be implemented)

Upon receiving Letter of Interest, WSFCU will score all appropriately in no less than 4 weeks. The 3 highest scoring firms will be notified and asked to present topics provided by WSFCU related to the referenced scope of work. Scoring will reset for the interview process, so candidates are on equal standing. The selected firms will be given no less than 2 weeks to prepare a team of presenters for this task. Teams not selected as finalists will be notified after the initial scoring process

SELECTION CRITERIA: Please do not submit fee information with your submittal. The City selects firms to provide professional services based on demonstrated competence and qualification. Once a firm is selected, the City will enter into contract negotiations with that firm; and, as part of that negotiation, will determine a fair and reasonable fee for the services to be provided. The City reserves the right to terminate negotiations with the selected firm(s) and proceed to negotiate with other firm(s) should contract/fee negotiations fail. Once a firm is selected, a detailed scope of services (broken down by specific milestone events/deliverables), and associated fee proposal, and implementation schedule will be refined, agreed to and once signed, will be identified and attached to the City’s standard professional services agreement form.

Any firm wishing to be considered must be properly registered with the Office of the Secretary of State.

The Engineers performing the work and in responsible charge of the work must be registered in the State of North Carolina and must have a good ethical and professional standing. It will be the responsibility of the selected private firm to verify the registration of any corporate subsidiary or subcontractor prior to submitting a Letter of Interest. The firm must have the financial ability to undertake the work and assume the liability. The selected firm(s) will be required to furnish proof of Professional Liability insurance coverage in the minimum amount of $1,000,000.00 per claim. The firm(s) must have an adequate accounting system to identify costs chargeable to the project.

All qualified firms who submit responsive Letters of Interest will be considered. The evaluation of these firms will be based on the firm’s overall experience, past performance, knowledge, and familiarity with the type of work required, the experience of proposed staff to perform specific work required, including any sub consultants.

Priority consideration will be given to firms that maintain an office in North Carolina and staffed with an adequate number of employees deemed by the City to be capable of performing a majority of the work required.

The City of Winston-Salem in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 252, 42 U.S.C. 2000d to 2000d-4 and Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Department of Transportation, Subtitle A, Office of the Secretary, Part 21, Nondiscrimination in Federally-assisted programs of the Department of Transportation issued pursuant to such Act, hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, minority business enterprises will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in consideration for an award.

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FORMAT FOR SUBMISSION OF A LETTER OF INTEREST

All Letters of Interest should be limited to twenty (20) pages, including the cover sheet. Letters of Interest containing more than 20 pages will not be considered. In order to reduce printing costs and to facilitate recycling, we request that only electronic Letters of Interest in PDF format be submitted prior to the deadline. The PDF copy should be e-mailed to: bids@cityofws.org.

Section I - Cover/Introductory Letter The introductory letter should be addressed to Derek Stroud, Utilities Capital Projects Engineer. The letter should contain the following information:

• Expression of firm’s interest in executing the work.

• Statement that the firm will perform a minimum of 35% of the work.

• Statement of any possible conflicts of interest; and

• Summation of information contained within the letter of interest, including an email address and telephone number for the firm’s contact person along with the business street address.

Section II - Evaluation Factors This section should contain information regarding evaluation and other factors listed in the advertisement such as:

• Identify project personnel/sub consultants’ qualifications and experience.

• Understanding of project (site and structure conditions, traffic and safety concerns, etc.);

• Unique qualifications of key team members.

• Proposed schedule for completion; and

• Identify type and location of similar work performed within the last five (5) years

Section III - Supportive Information This section should contain the following information:

• Capacity Chart/Graph (available work force);

• Organizational chart indicating personnel to be assigned by discipline.

• Resumes of key personnel.

• Names, classifications, and location(s) of the firm’s North Carolina personnel and resources to be assigned to the work; and

• Other relevant information

Private firms are invited to submit letters of interest for providing the requested engineering services to the City by 12:00 PM, October 5th, 2026. Letters of interest submitted after this deadline will not be considered. The submittal, in PDF format, should be submitted to Derek Stroud, Utilities Capital Projects Engineer, to the following email address: bids@cityofws.org .

Firms submitting Letters of Interest are encouraged to carefully check them for conformance to the requirements stated above. If Letters of Interest do not meet these requirements, they will be disqualified.

No exceptions will be granted.

All questions concerning this request for Letters of Interest or the scope of this work should be directed to: Derek Stroud dereks@cityofws.org. Questions will be accepted through 5:00 PM September 25th, 2026. If you feel the information provided is inadequate to submit a Letter of Interest, please contact Derek Stroud @ 336-747-7350 or by e-mail.

The firm selected will be notified by telephone. Notification will be given to those firms that were not selected by e-mail.

mailto:bids@cityofws.org mailto:bids@cityofws.org

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SECTION 4 – SELECTION and EVALUATION CRITERIA:

All qualified firms who submit responsive Letters of Interest will be considered. The evaluation of these firms will be based on the firm’s overall experience, past performance, knowledge, familiarity with the type of work required, and the experience of proposed staff to perform specific work required, including any sub consultants.

Do NOT submit fee information with your proposal! The City selects firms to provide professional services based on demonstrated competence and qualification. Once a firm is selected, the City will enter into contract negotiations with that firm; and, as part of that negotiation, will determine a fair and reasonable fee for the services to be provided. Should contract/fee negotiations fail, the City reserves the right to terminate negotiations with the selected firm(s) and proceed to negotiate with the next most qualified firm(s).

The selected firm will be notified by telephone. Once a firm is selected, a detailed scope of services, and associated fee proposal, and implementation schedule will be refined, agreed to and once signed, will be identified and attached to the City’s standard professional services agreement. The successful bidder for this project will be required to execute the City’s “Professional Services Agreement”. A copy of this document can be provided upon request.

Insurance. The selected firm(s) will be required to furnish proof of Professional Liability insurance coverage in the minimum amount of $1,000,000.00 per claim. The firm(s) must have an adequate accounting system to identify costs chargeable to the project. The City of Winston-Salem MUST be named as additional insured on the certificate of insurance supplied to the City.

Any firm wishing to be considered must be properly registered with the Office of the Secretary of State.

The professionals performing the work and in responsible charge of the work must be registered in the State of North Carolina and must have a good ethical and professional standing. It will be the responsibility of the selected private firm to verify the registration of any corporate subsidiary or subcontractor prior to submitting a Letter of Interest. The firm must have the financial ability to undertake the work and assume full liability.

The City of Winston-Salem in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 252, 42 U.S.C. 2000d to 2000d-4 and Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, Department of Transportation, Subtitle A, Office of the Secretary, Part 21, Nondiscrimination in Federally-assisted programs of the Department of Transportation issued pursuant to such Act, hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively insure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, minority business enterprises will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in consideration for an award.

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EVALUATION CRITERIA

Below is a description of the evaluation criteria that will be used to evaluate the proposals. To be deemed responsive, it is important for the firm’s proposal to contain appropriate detail to demonstrate satisfaction of each criterion and compliance with the performance provisions outlined in this RFP. The proposal will be the primary source of information used in the evaluation process. Proposal must contain information specifically related to the proposed services requested in this RFP. Failure of any firm to submit information requested may result in the elimination of the proposal from further evaluation. Respondents will be evaluated for selection on the basis of the Proposer most qualified to meet the requirements of this RFP. Major criteria to be considered in evaluation may include, but shall not necessarily be limited to:

1. Work Experience - The background, education, and experience of the proposed project team in providing similar services elsewhere, including and especially the level of experience in working with municipalities. Determination that the selected respondent has no contractual relationships that would result in a conflict of interest to the City’s contract. Proposer should include a list of similar projects within the last five (5) years that have been completed by the proposed project team.

2. Understanding of Project – The proposer’s demonstrated understanding of the project scope, background, and purpose, as well as any other pertinent details and/or innovative approach that would help exhibit clear understanding of potential project obstacles/challenges. This should include a proposed plan in which the proposer details the approach they would follow to carry out the project.

3. Past Performance – How a proposer has performed on previous projects for public and private entities. The proposer will be evaluated on client satisfaction from previous projects.

4. Proposed Plan of Action – Proposer’s demonstrated ability to meet the project's performance requirements with respect to schedule.

The following “Weighted Scale” will be used to evaluate each proposal

Evaluation Criteria Weight Work Experience 35

Understanding of Project 25 Past Performance 25

Proposed Plan of Action 15